Ski pole rings



A. C. H. WEISS SKI POLE RINGS Oct. 18, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Feb. 28, 1551 INVENTOR YjHez'occmJer C Hweiff *liv/ir,

/ ATTORNEY Oct. 18,V 1955 A. c. H. wElss 2,721,084

SKI POLE RINGS Filed Feb. 28, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheerl 2 INVENTOR United States Pater-1tr C SKILPQL'E RINGS' Alexander C. H.Weiss, Chicago, Ill.`

Application February 28,1951, Serial No. 213,190

3 Claims. v (Clll280-1L37) (Granted under -Ttle 35,' U. S.Y C0d.(1952), sec. 266) The invention described herein, if patented; may beV manufactured and used' by or for' the' Government for governmental purposes Without'the payment to me of `any royalty thereon.

This invention relates toski pole rings andespecially to the mounting of such'ringson the ski lpoles or sticks.

It is well knownthat ski lpole ringsrnustv be' exibly mounted on the poles.' rIllis'has'usually'been accomf plished by means ofY crossed'deather thongsory straps,` which are expensive `to make'and" attach and are unsat-i isfactory because of the-propensity-of'leatherto absorbV moisture and then freeze hard. Af number ofpatents in the prior art have suggested'various'mountings but `many of these seem undesirablebecausetheyv are too-compil cated or expensive, or'use tooA much rubber or'metal, or are too heavy, or forsomeother reason.

This invention' aims A'to provideskiV pole rings and 'attaching means whichr use'a minimumofstrategicmaterials, which permit a wide'angle of'swing of vtheV rings, which are easy to assemble anddisassemble, which make possible some adjustment of'the'connection,'-,which' are adequately strong, will notfreeze; and maybe4 manu-- factured on a large scale ata low cost.

Fig. 1 is a horizontalsectiononlineV 1-1of Fig, 2`

but on a smaller scale;

Fig. 2 is a section'online-Zl-Z'ofFig;,1 butLon a larger scale, showingA thelower end vonlyofthe ski poleor stick and showingv in dottedlines extreme positions which the ski pole ring'may assmnerelative to thestick';

Fig. 3 is an explodedview'in perspective' ofthe parts which secure the ring to thefstick;

Fig. 4 is a plan view'of'a' modified form of'ski stick ring;

Fig. 6 is a plan view ofV a fastening elementused on the ring of Figs. 4'and 5; and

Fig. 7 is a section on line 7'-7 of Fig. 6.l

Referring particularly to Figs. l, 2 and 3, the preferred form of the invention comprises'aA ski stick ring 10 made of plastic material Vas described below. Ring 10 `includes a rim 11, arms- 12 and'a'hub* 1311'1tegral with each other. Rim 11`has an annular'concavity or recess 14 on the underside surface-providing"a=circular edge 15 which may bite into thesurface Vof thesnow toiprevent side slipping. Hube13issformedin two layersatth'e time the ring-is made-soasto grip-'between said'layers a cup member 16, preferably of aluminum, having an integral circular flat flange 17 provided with arr annular series of perforations 18A through which the plastic enters to make a bonded union, as shown in Fig. 2. Cup member 16 has a central opening 16a considerably larger than the stick and also has a cup-like recess 161) in its center for receiving two spaced clamping or compression rings 19, 20 which grip between them a rubber ring 21 of circular cross section that is designed to engage the ski stick 22 directly. Compression rings 19, 20 are of aluminum or a hard plastic, said rings having 2,721,084 Ft'ented Oct. 18, 1955 ice opposed slopingV or beveled surfaces 19a,. 20a-respecf` tively to engage the rubber-ring. A screw cap-23; alsoV preferably of aluminum, with a central openingg23a vfor the ski stick, is screwed on the threads 24fprovided on the outside of cup member 16 and engages compression ring 19 to move said ring toward compression ring-20 thereby to compress and deform the rubber ring 21 andV cause it to grip the ski stick. This deformation-'is-approximately shown in Fig. 2. If preferred,.the periphery of screw cap 23 may be knurled to give aY goodgripso that it may be tightened or removed by hand.

The ski stick 22 is a hollow pole, preferably of-aluminum or other light metal, with a pointed lower-endZS and an arcuate reduced portion V26 about five inches from the lower extremity. If the ski stick isv 1%. in. in diame-f ter, the reduced portion 26 will be about 'fineinn diameter at its thinnest point. The rubber ring will lthen be about 1.125 in. in outside diameterandabout 0.375'

in. least inside diameter sothat'it must expand yto twice its inside diameter whenthe ski stickl is thrust;through it for assembly, and will contract to fit on the reducedportion 26 Very tightly. However, the ski stick ring is held flexibly and may pivot on the ski stick through a maximum of 30 in any one direction, or in'other:

words, any point on the rim of the ski stick ring1may, move through an arc of 60 measuring from oney extreme to the other, as the dotted lines of Fig. 2`indicate: This pivoting of thel ski stick ring will take place most readilyv when the rubber ring is compressed the least, as ,will'be' readilyunderstood; obviously, the swingingortilt-ingof'v the ring on the stick is possible because the rubber ring.

exes and changes its shape. Controlof the ease-A of movement of the ski stick.Y ring maybe had by employing rubber rings of varying softness, also byV tighten ing the screw cap more orvless. means (not shown) may hold the screw cap, in any screwed up position so-that roughv handling, willinotl loosen the screw cap.

To assemble the ring and ski stick, the pointed, lower end of the ski stick is thrust through the opening, in

the center ofthe ski stick ring and the ring is thenv pulled on. A- little soapv or other lubricant coated on the lower end of the ski stick will aid in'this assembly.

The ski stick ring is' preferably molded fromglass fabric and a resin. One composition which has given Paraplex is ai trade name for an alkyd resin manu-A factured by Resinous Products & Chemical Co., Philadelphia, Pa. Luperco ATC is the trade name for organic peroxides sold by the Lucidol Division, Novadel- Agene Corporation, Buffalo, N. Y., for use as catalytic or oxidizing agents.

Matched dies may be employed and a charge weighing about 0.28 lb. may be put in the mold, with a molding pressure of about 1000 p. s. i., with a temperature of If preferred," lockingV pole.

v 3 250 F., the curing time'being 3 minutes. The nished ring may weigh about 4 oz. exclusive of the screw cap, the rubber ring and the two aluminum compression rings. A white pigment may be incorporated in the mix prior to the molding so that the nished ring is white enough to be scarcely noticeable against a backl ground of snow.

In general, the resins which can be used satisfactorily to make ski pole rings are high impact type thermosetting resins having very low moisture absorption and good impact strength at 65 F. Among such resins are the class known as polyesters, of which alkyd plus styrene polymer is agood example. Some phenol-formaldehyde and melamine-formaldehyde resins arealso satisfactory. In some cases, ,polymerization takes place exothermicly while in other cases heat must be supplied. Temperatures range from room temperature to 310 F. and pressures from atmospheric to 1000 p. s. i.

or more. V

The described ring willV not rust or corrode orV rot; it has an exceptionally high strength-Weight ratio; it may be manufactured by automatic machinery; its assembly is-a simple operation; it requires little metal; it will not absorb Water and then freeze; and nally, it is a poor conductor of heat, hence will not absorb heat from the rays of the sun (asmetal rings do) and then melt Vsnow lying ythereon to cause the building up of ice layers from the frozen snow water in temperatures below the freezing point. A further advantage is the ease of assembling the ring on the ski pole: the pole need only be thrust through the center of the ring. When in position, the ring will swing as readily in one directionV as in another, so that the mounting may be termed a universal joint.

In case it is desired to employ a somewhat simpler construction requiring less metal and fewer parts, the form of Figs. 4-7 may be preferred. Here the ski pole ring30 (also of plastic as Ydescribed above) has a circular rim with an annular recess 31 on its underside, and four integral arms or spokes 32 which connect the rim with a hub 33 having a central .hole 34 for the ski Arms 32 are of a wavy formation so as lto increase the exibility of the ring, which reduces its liability to breakage when subjected to sharp blows. A rubber ring 35 (like ring 21') is held adjacent hole 34 'by a cup-like metal plate 36 which is secured by rivets 37 to hub 33. Plate 36 has a central opening 38 for the ski pole. No adjustment of the grip of the rubber ring on the ski pole is possible with this construction, nor is aV Y60" total swing of the ski pole ring permitted. The

form of Figs. 4-7 is someWhat-easierto mold as there is no problem Vof bonding a plastic mass to a central metallic cup member, as in the form of Figs. 1 3. lr' it is considered necessary to conserve metals, plate 35 may be of a hard plastic or hard rubber. Throughout this specification when rubber is mentioned, vulcanized natural rubber or synthetic rubbersV or elastomers of various compositions are'intended to be covered.

Obviously, the present invention is not limited to the particulary forms herein shown and described.

What I claim is:

1. In combination, a ski pole, a ski'pole ring, means ilexibly and removably securing the ski pole ring to the ski pole, saidA means comprising a deformable rubber ring surrounding and frictionally gripping the pole, a holder xed to the center of the ski pole ring and surrounding the rubber ring and confining it against displacement relative to the holder, operator-actuated means forming a complementary part of said holder and adapted to be screwed onto the holder and then imparting a thrust such as will deform the rubber ring laterally to press it against the .ski pole to increase said frictional grip; said holder being permanently fixed to the ski pole ring and providing a cup-like member, a pair of compression rings being within the cup-like member on either side of the rubber ring, said compression rings having opposed beveled faces contacting the rubber ring on opposite sides, and'said operator-actuated means being a cap screwed on the holder and bearing against one of the compression rings to tighten it against the rubber ring.

2. ln combination, a ski pole, a ski pole ring, means exibly and removably securing the ski pole ring to the ski pole, said means comprising a deformable rubber ring surrounding and frictionally gripping the pole, a holder fixed to the center of the ski pole ring and surrounding the rubber ring and confining it against displacement relative to the holder, operator-actuated means forming a complementary part of said holder and adapted to be screwed onto the holder and then imparting a thrust such as will deform the rubber ring laterally to press it against the ski pole to increase said frictional grip; the ski pole having a generally circular cross section and being of materially reduced circular crossV section at the place Where the ski pole ring is mounted u thereon, the portion of reduced cross section being smallestV at its middleV and gradually increasing in cross section in both directions longitudinally of the pole, said portion of reduced cross section having a length materially greater than the height or thickness of the rubber ring which surrounds and contacts it; `said holder having internal circular openings above and belowl the rubber ring which openings provide relatively wide spaces surrounding the reduced portion of the ski pole, such spaces and the resilience of the rubber ring coacting to permit lateral swinging of the ski pole ring through a considerable arc relative to the ski pole without impairment of the frictional grip of the rubber ring on the ski poie and without longitudinal shifting of theski pole ring on the ski Y pole. .y Y

3. The invention defined in claim 2, wherein the ski pole ring is itself a rigid assembly consistingV of a rigid rim, a plurality of arms rigidly connected at their outer ends to the rim, and a hub torwhich the arms are rig idly connected at their inner ends; said Vholder including a cup member which is rigidly secured to thev hub on the inside, a screw cap which is screwed on the cup member, and means surrounding the rubber ring and confined by both the cup member and the screw cap for holding the rubber ring against displacement relative to the ski pole ring; said internal circular openings being provided in both the cup member and the screw cap.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 600,046 Sparks Mar. 1, 1898 1,682,786 Harris Sept. 4, 1928 2,148,038 Raybould Feb. 21, 1939 2,297,489 Markes Sept.r29, 1942 2,431,120 Howe Nov. 18, 1947 2,562,359 Iredell, Ir iuly 3l, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 636,187 Germany Oct. 3,Y 1936 188,910 Switzerland Apr. 16, 1937 

